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The
Solar Screen Story - The History of Solar Screening
If you are
wondering why you should install solar screens you might want to consider the
history of how solar screens came about. The idea of a solar screen probably
originated in the caveman days. When the sun became too unbearable the
ancient caveman likely retreated into his shaded cave to escape the harsh
effects of the sun’s rays. That’s so easy a caveman could do it!
As history
progressed and man began to build homes of logs and rocks, he designed windows
into the house for ventilation and lighting, and outdoor views. Of course,
those windows which were exposed to the direct sun created a lot of heat in
those old homes and he designed shutters to close over the exterior of the
window to mitigate the harsh sun ray’s effects. When he did this, he
destroyed the 3 unique benefits the windows were designed for, ventilation,
light, and outward view.
History
progressed and man invented cooling. Now he could put cooling in his home and
open up the shutters. If the sun heated up the home too much he just turned
down the thermostat to make it cooler. This felt good on the sunny side of
the house but the other side of the house got too cold. So man discovered the
use of curtains, shades, and blinds to filter the sun. Unfortunately, all
these devices did was slow down the heat but it eventually came into the room
and had to be removed by the “air conditioner”.
As man became
more industrialized he used more and more energy and the demand caused the
cost of electricity to go higher and higher. A solution had to be found so
that people could continue to have windows in their homes and buildings for
lighting and outward views, not to mention some fresh air now and then! This
is where the idea of a solar screen was invented. Windows had bug screens so
the flying insects would not come into the house or building when the windows
were opened for ventilation. Why not develop a thicker and heavier mesh to
block the sun’s rays from coming through the window? This would still allow
air to enter the open window and would let some of the sunlight in to
supplement the interior lights. This was very important since it requires
electricity to operate the lights, and people inside the buildings would still
have an outward view!
There are
many things to consider when selecting the right solar screen system for your
home or business. You will find many more informative articles about the
subject of solar screens and solar shades by this same author throughout this
website.
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Consider the framing system of the insect screens on your
existing windows. Typically, these are 5/16" X 5/8" and made of .020
aluminum. This is not much more than the aluminum foil found in your
kitchen drawers. In fact, most people have the strength to easily bend and
damage an insect screen frame.